BENNINGTON ó An Arlington teenager was charged with a felony count of burglary of an occupied home on Monday after police said they believed he had taken a fire safe from a home sometime between Sept. 4 and Nov. 2.

Benjamin Culler, 19, of Arlington, pleaded innocent to the charge in Bennington criminal court on Monday. He was released without bail.

In an affidavit, Trooper Lewis Hatch, of the Vermont State Police, said he had been dispatched to a home in Arlington on Nov. 2. The woman living at the home said a small fire safe, containing personal papers, had been stolen.

She said she suspected Culler, a friend of her son, because there was no sign of forced entry and Culler knew where to find a key to the house.

Hatch said Culler and his father came to the Vermont State Police barracks in Shaftsbury on Dec. 16 but Culler said he was not responsible for the burglary. However, the woman later contacted Hatch and said she found a cellular phone in her vehicle which belonged to a friend of Cullerís. According to the woman, there were messages on the cell phone about the burglary.

Hatch said he spoke to Cullerís friend on Jan. 14. The friend said he knew the woman and in November saw that Culler had a picture of her from when she was younger. He said Culler then admitted he had taken the safe.